Looking Up From The Phone

After a long commute and a much longer day at work, this is what greeted me as I climbed the stairs up from the subway. The next day was as hot as that ball of sun promised it would be.

City Summer

Wow, have I gone soft!

I live on the top floor and what I remember most from science classes is that heat rises. I’m reminded of that every day that I wait for my landlord to replace the broken air conditioner.

I grew up without air conditioning. That was my normal. We did what we always did, just sweaty and, probably, a little stinky. If it became unbearable we took quick showers or ran through people’s lawn sprinklers. And yes, the year I lived in the Bronx I enjoyed the fire hydrants with all the other kids. Three life lessons in one: tough enough to handle the water pressure, grateful that someone (illegally?) opened the hydrants up for us, nimble enough to dodge the cars because we were, after all, in the street.

Summer as High and Low Season

What a linguistically weird time this is: Students are almost done with the school year and most will be off for the summer. Adults who get vacation time take the chance to relax a little. That would make it the time-off-season. But it’s also a peak travel time. What should be off-season is, in fact, high season.

It’s the time of end-term traditions. Among the multitude of activities common in various localities is the gym lock affixed to random fences.